LEWISBURG, Pa. — These are Bucknell University story ideas that may interest you in October.
WHAT MAKES A GOOD BOSS? — As National Boss’s Day approaches Friday, Oct. 16, Freeman College of Management Professor Udayan Dhar, management & organizations, says employees increasingly value managers who provide autonomy, opportunities for growth and psychological safety while moving beyond command-and-control leadership. “They are looking for managers who can take a coach-like approach, which involves asking rather than telling, good listening skills, and the ability to provide developmental feedback,” Dhar says. Building trust also means allowing employees to take risks and learn from mistakes. “This requires time and patience, but enhances trust in the long-term,” he says. Dhar’s recent research, published last month in Organizational Dynamics, explores how organizations can foster employee learning and development alongside a performance-focused culture, drawing on neuroscience and physiology to explain why the two require distinct approaches. CONTACT: Dhar, 570-577-1264, ud002@bucknell.edu
BUCKNELL REFIT — Bucknell student Ava Sklar ’28 turned a problem with her own overflowing closet into a campus-wide online marketplace for buying and selling secondhand clothing. “I had all these clothes other people might want, and other people had clothes I would want, but no way to get them to each other,” Sklar says. Drawing on skills from her computer science minor, which she pursued after taking a course with Professor Annie Ross, computer science, Sklar built the business Bucknell Refit in just one month. A longtime secondhand shopper, Sklar estimates about 70% of her wardrobe comes from online resale. With guidance from Erin Jablonski, director of the Perricelli-Gegnas Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation, she also learned the tax requirements needed to make the platform fully operational. The site launched in April and allows students to list used clothing, upload photos and retailer details, and connect with buyers across campus while helping students save money, reduce clothing waste and build community through secondhand shopping. CONTACT: Sklar, ars038@bucknell.edu
OF GHOSTS AND HAUNTINGS — Halloween connects to ghosts and hauntings because its ancient roots mark a time when the boundary between the living and the dead was believed to disappear. And it’s the time when Bucknell Academic Associate Dean of Arts & Sciences Rich Robbins tries to connect the dots on what’s real or a myth with ghosts and hauntings through his annual free, public presentation, “Ghosts and Hauntings: Decide for Yourself” on Tuesday, Oct. 27, at 6 p.m. in the University’s MacDonald Commons. During his talk, Robbins will introduce theories of what ghosts and other related phenomena are, offer a discussion of evidence for and against the existence of ghosts, including alleged ghost photos and examples of electronic voice phenomena, and will discuss local “hot spots.” A full-time psychology/behavioral sciences faculty member for four years before moving into higher education administration and adjunct teaching for the past 25 years, Robbins is a certified parapsychologist who has participated in several ghost hunts, consulted on books about hauntings, and has been interviewed by the media regarding ghosts and hauntings. “My role is to provide the information and educate the audience, who can then make up their own minds about ghosts and hauntings” says Robbins. “My empirical research training and experience in social science methodology, along with my knowledge of human psychophysiology and psychology, allow me to bring an academic take on what is known as the “paranormal.” Robbins has a book forthcoming this month entitled Ghosts. CONTACT: Robbins, 570-577-3293, rich.robbins@bucknell.edu
###
CONTACT: Mike Ferlazzo, 570-577-3212, 570-238-6266 (c), mike.ferlazzo@bucknell.edu